


Hide Like Steel, Heart Like Stuffing

by shamrockivy



Series: Thunderstreak's Adventures [8]
Category: Transformers (Bay Movies)
Genre: Gen, Post Mpreg
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-06
Updated: 2014-08-06
Packaged: 2018-02-12 00:39:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,243
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2089146
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shamrockivy/pseuds/shamrockivy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ironhide's reflection on how fighting for the humans changed his race's entire future.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Hide Like Steel, Heart Like Stuffing

Ironhide was a very old mech.

Granted, he wasn’t as old as his sparkbonded, but that is a statement to never be made within auditory range of the somewhat cranky medic.

He had been in countless battles, skirmishes, and missions where sometimes the foes wore the faces of monsters while others wore the faces of past friends. Comrades had been slain, staggering losses had piled up on both sides of the war, and destruction and death reigned until finally their entire home planet had been enveloped in desolation.

Ironhide knew he wasn’t a skilled strategist, medic, or scout. He lacked the patience for the first, the interest for the second, and the stealth and small size for the third. Instead, he was good at destroying, killing, and blowing things up so that’s what he put his whole entire self into being the best at and it had earned him the title Weapons Specialist in just a few millennium.

When told to shoot he did so. When told to cover another comrade he did it with all his ammo out and ready for action. When told to follow in a desperate chase to retrieve the Allspark after it was ejected out into space, he obeyed without a question. Ironhide was a soldier and he had sworn his allegiance to Prime.

Even after arriving on Earth, Ironhide only questioned Prime’s decision about fighting to save the humans. He didn’t see the reason for staying and risking their lives for such insignificant beings. It was not until the battle commenced in Mission City that Ironhide became fully aware of how similar the humans were to their Autobot allies.

Ironhide had watched as Captain Lennox led his own men into battle, and refused to leave them behind even when it was clear that they were heavily outgunned and would most likely not be surviving their encounter with the Deceptions. He watched as Sam, a far too young human with no previous battle experience of any kind, accept orders from an unfamiliar commanding officer and follow the orders at the risk and near sacrifice of his life. He watched as Mikaela, another too young human, risk her own safety to assure that Bumblebee was not left behind and then partnered with him to eliminate a common enemy.

But what truly changed Ironhide’s mind about the humans was hearing Sam’s screams over the chaos of battle that perfectly matched the clenching of his spark upon seeing how Bumblebee’s legs had been stripped from him.

What Sam had done to save Optimus at Mission City was enough bravery to make Ironhide grudgingly admit respect and a debt to the boy.

Of course, when Sam had once again saved Prime, retrieving the Matrix and resurrecting Optimus with it after having died himself and been brought back by the original six Primes, Ironhide had to consider that he now owed a debt to the boy that would most likely never be able to be fully repaid.

When Sam and Bumblebee first announced their joining as sparkmates, Ironhide was not entirely thrilled at the announcement, though he was wise enough to not speak his opinion out loud. That decision had nothing to do with the fact his leader and team medic would dish out enough pain to make him wish he’d never been sparked if he spoke of his disapproval.

It wasn’t that Ironhide disliked the boy, quite the opposite, which was something to be said because he was generally not a mech to like anything unless it could blow up something. What kept Ironhide from fully accepting the union was the fact that Sam was human. In less than a century he would die, while Bee would be tormented every functional moment of everything that was Sam. He would become cold, calculated, and efficient with his missions, and though he would be functioning, his spark would be nothing but frozen ice.

His spark would become hard and impenetrable, and the joyous Bee they knew would die with Sam.

Bee was definitely a hardened soldier, but not a hardened mech and Ironhide was definitely old enough to know the difference.

But Sam had to go and change all that, for suddenly he was half one of them, and there was no more looming decay, no more insufferable watch of Bee’s optics dimming day by day.

In a matter of a few Earth months, Samuel James Witwicky became the Autobots’ very foundation. Prime’s son in all but name, sparkbonded to Bee, and the bringer of bright sparklings into their once dark world, Sam was their hope and future all rolled up into a slightly over five foot tall being.

It was thanks to Sam and Bee’s sparkbonding that Ironhide now had his own bonded. After countless centuries of turning him down, Ratchet had finally caved and accepted his less demanding than usual offer to be bonded. The medic had admitted to him that it was seeing how ecstatic the young couple was together that allowed Ratchet to see how very much he wanted that for himself.

And though not particularly happy with the details of the event, Ironhide now had a sparkling, a little mech, to raise together with his bonded, a faint dream he’d secretly held in his spark for untold millennium. Steelshadow was shaping up into a fine mech, though he tended to favor his medic Creator, being far less loud and volatile than Ironhide himself.

Ironhide and all the Autobots together, were forever grateful to Sam for saving their Prime’s life twice. They were relieved that Sam had saved one of their youngest from feeling the greatest loss of their kind. They were honored that Sam now shared their own form and abilities. They were elated that Sam had delivered their race’s future through sparklings. And now, they were awed at the power Sam used to bring Jazz’s spark back into his newly rebuilt body, a feat that had knocked Sam into involuntary stasis for five whole Earth days.

Sam had done it in secret, having only told Bee about it, a fact that had stirred up the whole base, though the anger at Sam’s rash action simply couldn’t stick with Jazz running around the base in his usual high spirits.

He had the privilege of holding his two year old Steel in one arm and Sam and Bee’s one year old Winter in the other with nine year old Thunder hiding behind his leg as his bonded ranted and raved at Sam about the complications that could have arisen during his attempt. Ironhide was privately proud of his bonded for not having thrown any wrenches, but it was most likely due to the sparklings’ presence in his med bay that made him refrain from his normal bedside manner.

Ironhide is still a battle hardened mech whose ammo and armor are known for being the toughest, but though his hide may be as solid as steel, his spark can’t help but be as soft as stuffing with all the sparklings and love-struck couples always coming and going from the base. That doesn’t mean he won’t blast anyone with his plasma cannons who’s dumb enough to say it to his face though.

Seeing how content and happy his comrades and family are, Ironhide is certain that the decision to fight for the humans was the right one.

After all, Ironhide is a very old mech, one who’s definitely old enough to know.


End file.
